by Sweet
Most of the EMTs had worked with her at one time or another and she had a good relationship with them, that’s why they paid attention to her requests when she needed to call on them. She was happy to say this wasn’t all that often.
Noah let the EMTs into her office and she explained the situation. She told them what she had given Allison and how much of it. They noted everything as they loaded her onto a gurney.
“I will be at the hospital shortly,” she told them as they were leaving with Allison.
Noah would need to postpone her last two appointments of the day and reschedule them. She was going to need to make sure Allison was settled and receiving medication immediately.
Well, maybe she would at least be finished in time to make dinner with Hollianne and Erick, she thought.
She had promised them for ages that she would visit them, but something always seemed to get in the way. Hollianne had come into Moon Bay a few times so that they could grab lunch and do some dress fittings for Holli’s upcoming wedding to Erick Angell. But, so far, Dreama hadn’t quite made it to the castle.
Dreama couldn’t help but smile.
That’s what she had dubbed the enormous structure that Erick and Hollianne called home. It actually was a castle and was very beautiful, located on one of the most amazing property that she had ever seen.
Whenever she got a chance, she would drive out and spend a few days there. It was so relaxing there.
Her friendship with Holli started the moment they met each other on one of the social gatherings organized by her sister Raven for their father’s Law Firm. Erick Angell and his beautiful fiancée were invited, and she only went because her dad personally called her to attend. And, all right, because she knew Simon would also be there.
Simon Draco, one of the youngest partners in the firm and a brilliant lawyer, happened to be her friend. She knew the party wouldn’t be dull with him there.
What surprised her was when she found out he was a personal friend to Erick Angell, one of the youngest billionaire businessman in the country. And it was a delightful bonus that she and Hollianne had become friends right away – actually, as soon as they started talking.
Holli was honest and delightfully real to the core. It was thrilling to actually meet someone like her.
When she learned her background and how she managed to hold on until Erick found and saved her from her dire situation, she couldn’t help but admire and respect her strength. Holli also liked her and said so, even saying as much as that she was like a twin sister she never had. Their friendship and subsequent closeness just went so smoothly that it felt like it was something that’s just waiting to happen.
It was one of those things that made her feel sad that she had never enjoyed even a minimal part of that closeness with her own sister, Raven. But this time, being Holli’s friend also made her feel relieved that she had someone now to really be like a sister to. She had wanted something like this for a long time, and she was grateful that it seemed the heavens had finally granted her prayer.
Thinking about all of it also brought a stray thought to her mind.
She idly wondered if Simon Draco might be joining them for dinner.
Chapter Three
DREAMA'S HEART THUDDED just a bit harder and beat a bit faster as she thought of the handsome Simon. But he did not even see her as a woman. Oh, if only he did not see her as Raven’s younger sister… maybe?
Even though she knew that she would never have a chance with him, she still couldn’t help the way she felt about him.
She sighed heavily. If she could find a man that could even compare to someone like Simon, this wouldn’t be so difficult. Most of the times that she thought about him, her body reacted like a teenager who was going to pass by her crush in the corridor – each and every time. For a woman her age, this was really a bit aggravating. She shouldn’t be feeling like this anymore. She should have moved on a long time ago from behavior like this – especially after what career she had chosen to study! One would think she would have found a way to cure this infatuation a long time ago.
She sighed again, and this time, she also shook her head.
At any rate, she had some things to take care of if she was going to make it to dinner. With that, she gathered her purse and briefcase and locked her office door.
Waving to Noah as she went out, she knew that he had already re-scheduled those last two appointments. That’s just how efficient this man was.
Maybe it was time to give him another raise.
* * *
SIMON LOOKED ACROSS his massive desk at the young man seated there.
He had known that he was going to help Andrew Martin from the second they had shaken hands. That little current that ran through him when someone was innocent had alerted him that Andrew was, indeed, telling the truth with his version of events.
But he had to go through the motions. Part of being successful as a human being was to act as clueless and normal as them. He had perfected this trick after practicing it for so many years.
Besides, he had to hear the full story so that he would know how to proceed and where to look for the evidence that would clear Andrew.
“So you’re saying that you were never at Ms. Stevens’ home on the evening of November 24th,” Simon said. “Is that right?”
“Yes, Mr. Draco,” a very nervous but earnest Andrew replied. “I was at home and I was passed out.” He frowned. “That’s another thing – I know I only had a couple of beers with my buddy Jake. We were at my house watching the game. After I had my second beer, I started to feel kind of weird, and then there was just nothing. When I woke up, it was like 7 o’clock the next morning, I was still lying on my couch with an afghan over me. I guess Jake covered me with it and turned off the television before he left, whenever that was.”
“I see,” Simon replied. The wheels were already turning in his head. He had a feeling that Andrew’s good “buddy” Jake knew quite a lot about what had happened to Pamela Stevens on that fateful night. He just needed the evidence that would prove his hunch was right.
Pamela was Andrew’s ex-girlfriend and he had been having trouble moving on from her. He genuinely loved her, even though the relationship had not worked out, and it had been very painful for him to let go of her.
So the breakup had been very hard on Andrew. He freely admitted that. He also had, admittedly, shown up at her house on more than one occasion following the breakup in an extremely intoxicated state, and loudly begged her to come back to him. But he had never been threatening and had only served to embarrass himself as well as Pamela. Sadly, she had moved on and simply felt bad that Andrew couldn’t do the same.
Yet, on the night of November 24th, someone had broken into Pamela’s house. This person had attacked her while she slept, raped her and cold-bloodedly left her for dead. She did not die, but she was now in a coma from which the doctors weren’t sure she would emerge.
Being the only suspect because of motive, the police had focused their entire investigation on Andrew and would most certainly be arresting him any day now if he couldn’t prove his innocence. But his alibi was weak. Someone who knew Andrew personally and never believed the young man could do such a thing had recommended Simon to him, and now they sat talking here in Simon’s office about what measures could be taken to help his case.
“Did the police speak to Jake?” Simon asked while making some notes on his legal pad.
“Yeah, they talked to him and he told them that I got drunk and passed out. He said that he finished watching the game, covered me up, turned off the television and left.”
“Okay. Do you know if they checked into this more thoroughly?”
“Actually, I don’t know. They seemed so focused on me that I don’t think they looked at anyone else too closely.”
“What about the man Pamela had been seeing? Victor Campbell?” Simon asked. “Did the police question him?”
“Yeah,” Andrew sighed heavily. “It turns ou
t that the only thing that guy is guilty of is being an asshole. Do you know he went to see her in the hospital, took one look at her, and ran out of the room gagging? He hasn’t been back, either from what I understand. Can you imagine? The woman you’re supposed to love is that near death and you can’t even be with her? That’s disgusting!”
“Sounds like a true man,” Simon commented dryly.
“Look, Mr. Draco, I know that I made an ass out of myself more than once after Pam broke up with me. But it was only because I loved her so much and I desperately wanted to get back together with her! I would never hurt her! All I want is for her to wake up and be okay again. Of course, she also can tell everyone that I would never hurt her, true, but she must wake up and be okay. That is the most important thing to me.” His voice broke and he had to pause for a moment. “Even if she never speaks to me again, I still want her to wake up so she can have a chance to be happy whether that’s with someone else or not. I mean, the breakup wasn’t the high point of my life, but we don’t hate each other or anything like that. Do you think you can help me, Mr. Draco?”
Simon looked at this young man who was fairly trembling on the other side of his desk. He almost had it all worked out as to what had happened, but there were still plenty of blanks to fill in before he could help Andrew. But help him, he would.
“Andrew, I’m not going to lie to you. This isn’t going to be easy especially if Pamela doesn’t wake up. In fact, right now, the fact that she’s still breathing is the only reason you haven’t been arrested and charged with murder. It’s definitely in your best interest for her to wake up. Now the first thing we need to prepare for is that the police will be arresting you soon. Have they executed a search warrant on your home yet?”
“Yeah, and that was all kinds of fun,” Andrew replied glumly.
“Yes, I can imagine,” Simon said sympathetically. “I’ll be checking into what they found, if anything. I’m going to also check into what their interview with Jake produced. What you need to do is be ready for the cops to show up at your door with an arrest warrant. When they do, call me immediately. Do not, and I can’t stress this enough, answer any questions without me there. Now do you have any assets that you can use for bail if it becomes necessary?”
“Not really,” Andrew said. “I actually don’t have any money. Working in a body shop doesn’t pay quite as much as you’d think. But I’ll try to figure out something. I can’t stay in jail.”
“Well, I’m sure we can work something out if the time comes,” Simon said smoothly. “Now are you sure that you haven’t left anything out? I need to know everything, even if it’s something that you feel is embarrassing or makes you look bad. Do you understand?”
“Yes, sir, Mr. Draco,” Andrew nodded emphatically. “I absolutely do understand. I wouldn’t keep anything from you. Besides, I already made an ass out of myself by going over to Pam’s drunk and obnoxious.”
“If that’s all they have on you, then it may be easier than I think,” Simon laughed. “You’re not the only person to ever pull a stunt like that – believe me, I know. But let’s not assume anything either way. I’ll be happy to represent you, Andrew, and I’ll get started on your case immediately.”
Simon rose and so did Andrew. He came around the desk and shook hands with the younger man, and started to walk him to the door.
“Okay, Andrew, I’ll let you know as soon as I find out anything. In the meantime, remember to call me the second you hear anything from the police.”
“Yes, sir, Mr. Draco. Thank you so much!”
“You can thank me when I’ve gotten you out of this mess. Now, try not to worry. Remember, you’ve got me on your side and, even if I say so myself, I’ve had a quite a bit of success in defending falsely accused people.”
“I’m so happy to have you helping me, Mr. Draco. You just don’t understand how much hope you’ve given me.”
“Well, Andrew, you keep holding on to that hope. We’ll get this sorted.
Chapter Four
AFTER ANDREW HAD left his office, Simon closed the door and sat down at his desk. Picking up the phone, he punched in a number that he could have recited in his sleep and waited for an answer.
“Hi, Simon. How’s it going?”
“Oh, you know how it is, Erick. Never a dull moment. How’s Hollianne? Have you run her off yet?”
He heard Erick chuckling and Simon couldn’t help but grin. That was one of the very significant changes in his personality since falling in love – yes, Erick Angell, one of the most cynical of them angels, had fallen in love. This news had created such a noise among the Earthbound Angels. He could almost imagine the sound they made before their wings were taken from them. The flapping of thousands of wings could be quite… liberating.
Well, that was what he’d thought with not just a bit of sentiment as news about the impending wedding passed from line to line. If the Earthbound still had wings, they would be flapping. Like hands clapping. Quite a lot of Earthbounds had embraced the human life and had married and raised kids of their own. But with Erick being here on Earth longer than most and managing to hide himself from personal human interactions in his castle for years, one could imagine the stir it caused to watch him “fall”, no pun intended.
So, back to the beginning. Erick wasn’t a chuckler. It was a good experience to hear him do this now. If someone could make Erick chuckle, then the world really wasn’t such a hopeless place.
“You know, I’m not quite sure how I got so lucky but I’m very thankful. Now, you’re still going to be my Best Man, aren’t you?” he asked.
“I wouldn’t miss it, my friend,” Simon said enthusiastically before sobering and becoming serious. “Look, I’ve got a favor to ask you.”
“Sure thing. What’s up?”
Chapter Five
“I’VE GOT THIS new client,” Simon told Erick. “Nice young man named Andrew Martin. You might have heard about the Pamela Stevens attack a couple of months ago?”
“Oh yeah, I did hear about that. So Andrew’s your client. Does that mean that he’s innocent?”
“Yes, he had nothing to do with it but he’s about to be arrested for attempted murder and rape. I wonder if you can get in touch with your special friend. I need all of the information I can get.”
“Of course. Give me the details and I’ll put in a call to him right now.”
“Thanks, Erick. I really appreciate it.”
When he had given Erick the information he needed to pass onto his friend, Simon assured Erick that he would see him that night for dinner before he finished the call.
Sitting back in his chair, he gazed out the window of his high rise office. The view of the city of Moon Bay never failed to amaze him. Even as old as it was, the city still rose to meet the challenges of modern technology while meshing it with the older and more historical sections.
His view of all of it calmed him.
As Simon thought back on his journey thus far, he couldn’t say that he regretted any part of it. Well, there were some regrettable areas – those events when he’d been incredibly ignorant.
He and Erick had both been angels. However, they had been cast out of Heaven to live among the humans that they had so criticized. At first, they had both been quite angry at the situation, but the longer they remained on Earth, the more adjusted they had become.
Simon had adjusted faster than Erick, but it had taken meeting Hollianne for Erick to realize that he could live a very happy life here as a human.
He had to smile when he thought of the changes that had taken place in Erick since he had met and fallen in love with Hollianne Talbot. These changes were so intense that Simon had heard it in Erick’s voice the first time he had spoken to him after meeting Holli – even when they were talking on the phone. It was a truly beautiful experience for them both, and it warmed Simon’s heart each time he thought of it.
Even though they were disgraced and fallen angels, their Father had not totally abandon
ed them. They wanted for nothing. Their only condition was that they had to use special powers that they had been granted to help unfortunate humans. He had long since stopped questioning how certain humans were chosen for his help. Rather, he had started to just accept it and help those that were sent to him.
It was this very situation that had brought him together with some of the most special people that he had ever met. Of course, there was Erick who was his brother. Then there was Karl, his house manager. Simon had long ago started to think of Karl in that capacity. But he was much more than that. He was Simon’s friend, and that meant more than any of Karl’s other numerous talents, which weren’t simple necessities – he often wondered how he could live as comfortably and accomplish many things without Karl. As a friend and a house manager who took care of most of his needs, Karl was irreplaceable.
In truth, there wasn’t anything that Simon had found that Karl could not do. He was a registered nurse, a world class chef, a licensed masseuse, and his chauffeur. Not only that, but Karl did do windows when cleaning the Simon’s home as well as the laundry.
The first thing he had learned when he started living as a human was how activities that used to be mundane were pushed in the forefront of his struggle. Angels don’t eat, do laundry, and clean after themselves. But suddenly, he needed to learn how to cook, wash clothes, and take a bath every few hours. It would sometimes made him feel foolish, remembering his early struggles were about which to use in order to clean an undershirt – a bar of soap or the powder? Although the bath soap had smelled much better, and yes, he did use that for quite a while.
But of course, when Karl came to his life he gratefully, and finally, had had time to face the more serious challenges in being a human that used to be an angel.
And that had been quite a ride. It was curious that the first unfortunate incident in his interaction with humans that had pushed him to the direction that he needed to take and the mission that he had to take upon as a mantle – defender of the innocent. Simon used the Law to defend humans who had been falsely accused of wrong doing.
